Content

• Steps
• Part 1 of 4: Sounds, Notes, and Scales
• Part 2 of 4: Beats and Rhythm
• Part 3 of 4: Melody, Harmony, and Chords
• Part 4 of 4: Types of Musical Instruments
• Tips

The first musical instruments - bone flutes - appeared about 35 thousand years ago, but mankind could have been making music long before them. Over time, the understanding of music became deeper and deeper. Although in order to create music, it is not necessary to thoroughly know the theory of scales, rhythm, melody, and harmony, nevertheless, some knowledge in this area will help you create better quality music.

Steps

Part 1 of 4: Sounds, Notes, and Scales

1. 1 Understand the difference between "pitch" and "note". These terms are used to describe the qualities of musical sounds. They are related but have some differences.
   • Pitch refers to how low or high a sound is, depending on its frequency. The higher the frequency, the higher the sound. The difference in frequency between sounds of different pitches is called an interval.
   • A note denotes a sound of a certain frequency. The standard frequency for the first octave A (A) is 440 Hz, although some orchestras use a different standard, such as 443 Hz, to achieve a brighter sound.
   • Most people can tell if a note is correct when another note is played along with it, or a series of notes from a composition they know. This is called "relative hearing". A small number of people have developed "perfect pitch", which allows you to determine the pitch without hearing another sound.
2. 2 Understand the difference between "timbre" and "tone". These terms are commonly used in relation to musical instruments.
   • Timbre refers to a combination of standard pitch and overtones that appear when you play a note on a musical instrument. If you pick up the low E (E) string on an acoustic guitar, in fact, you will hear not only the low E (E) note, but additional overtones that are higher than the standard one. It is the combination of these sounds, also called "harmonics", that makes each instrument sound unique.
   • Tone is a more abstract term. It denotes the effect that a combination of standard pitch and overtones has on a person's hearing. Adding higher harmonics to the timbre will give a brighter and clearer tone, while lower harmonics will give a softer tone.
   • A tone is also called the interval between two sounds of different pitches (whole tone).Half of this interval is called a semitone.
3. 3 Learn the names of the notes. Notes can be named in several ways. In the West, two methods are most common.
   • Alphabetic names: Alphabetic names are assigned to the notes with a certain frequency. In English and Danish-speaking countries, these are the letters A through G. In German-speaking countries, the letter B stands for the note B-flat, or B-flat (the black piano key between the notes A and B), and the letter H is used for denoting the note B, or B (a white key on a piano with a note B).
   • Solfeggio: In this system, notes have monosyllabic names according to their sequence in the scale. The system was developed in the 11th century by the monk Guido d'Arezzo, who used “ut, re, mi, fa, sol, la, si” taken from the first words of each line of the hymn to John the Baptist. Over time, “ut” was replaced by “do”, and some shortened “salt” to “so” (in some parts of the world, solfeggio is the main system for naming notes).
4. 4 Understand the notes in the scale. A gamma is a sequence of intervals when the highest sound in a gamut has a frequency twice that of the lowest. This range is called an octave. Some common scales are:
   • The chromatic scale has 12 semitone intervals. Playing an octave on the piano, starting from the "C" note of the first octave to the "C" note of the second octave, that is, successive pressing of all the white and black keys, denotes the chromatic scale. Other scales are more stripped down than this one.
   • The major scale has seven intervals: the first and second are whole tones; the third is a semitone; the fourth, fifth, and sixth - in whole tones; the seventh interval is a semitone. Playing an octave on the piano from the C note of the first octave to the C note of the second octave, using only white keys, is an example of a major scale.
   • The minor scale also has seven intervals. The most common form is the natural minor scale. The first interval is a whole tone, the second is a semitone, the third and fourth are whole tones, the fifth is a semitone, the sixth and seventh are whole tones. Playing an octave on the piano from an A in a minor octave to an A in a first octave, using only white keys, is an example of a natural minor scale.
   • The scale of the pentatonic scale has five intervals. The first interval is a whole tone, the second is three semitones, the third and fourth are one whole tone each, the fifth is three semitones. In the key of C (C), the pentatonic notes will be C (C), D (D), F (F), G (G), A (A), and again C (C). You can also play the pentatonic scale using only the black keys on the piano, between the first and third octaves. The pentatonic scale is used in African music, East Asian and Indian music, and folk music.
   • The very first note in the scale is called the tonic. Usually, songs are written in such a way that the tonic is the last note in the song. A song written in the key of C almost always ends with a C note. Often it is indicated next to a note whether the key is major or minor; if not specified, the key is considered to be major.
5. 5 Use sharp and flat to raise or lower notes. Sharps and flats raise or lower a note by one semitone. They are necessary to play in keys other than C major and A minor and to keep the correct intervals. Sharps and flats are indicated next to the notes on the musical notation, and are called alteration signs.
   • A hash (similar to a hashtag - #) next to a note raises it by one semitone. In the keys G-major and E-minor (G major and E minor), the F (F) note is raised one semitone and is F-sharp.
   • A flat sign (similar to an uppercase English letter 'b') next to a note lowers it by one semitone. In the keys F-major and D-minor (F major and D minor), the B (B) note is lowered one semitone and is the B-flat note.
   • For convenience, the notes to be lowered or raised in a particular key are indicated at the beginning of each line of the musical notation. In this case, alteration signs should only be used for notes outside the major or minor key in which the song is written. Such alteration marks will only be applied to individual notes within a measure.
   • A bekar sign (looks like a vertical parallelogram with lines going up and down from its two vertices), located next to a note, means that this note should not be raised or lowered in this section of the song. Bekar is never used at the beginning of a musical notation along with other alteration signs, but it can be used to cancel sharps and flats within a measure.

Part 2 of 4: Beats and Rhythm

1. 1 Understand the difference between beat, beat, and tempo. These terms are also related.
   • Beat (beat) is a term that characterizes the pulsation of music. A beat can be either a sounding note or a piece of silence called a pause. In addition, several notes can sound during one beat, and vice versa - one note or pause can last several beats.
   • Rhythm is a series of beats and pulsations. The rhythm is determined by the location of the notes and rests in the song.
   • Tempo is how fast or slow the song is played. The faster the tempo, the more beats sound per minute. The song “The Blue Danube Waltz” has a slow tempo, while “The Stars and Stripes Forever” has a fast one.
2. 2 A set of beats in measures. A bar is a collection of beats. Each measure has an equal number of beats. The number of beats in each measure of the song is indicated at the beginning of the staff of the staff when denoting the beat, which looks like a fraction without a bar separating the numerator and denominator.
   • The top number indicates the number of beats per measure. Usually this number is 2, 3, or 4, but it can be 6 or higher.
   • The bottom number indicates which note is received in one whole beat. If the bottom number is 4, a quarter note is taken in one beat (looks like a filled oval with a vertical line). If the bottom number is 2, a half note is received in one beat (looks like an open oval with a vertical line). If the bottom number is 8, an eighth note is received in one beat (looks like a quarter note with a flag).
3. 3 Find a strong beat. Rhythm is determined by which beats (beats) in a measure are strong (accented) and weak (unaccented).
   • In most songs, the first beat (beat) is the downbeat, or accented beat. The remaining beats (beats) are unaccented, although in a measure with four beats, the third beat may also be accented, but its accent will be weaker than the first beat.
   • Sometimes in music, weak beats are accentuated instead of strong ones. This is called syncopation; in this case, the emphasis is said to be on the weak beat.

Part 3 of 4: Melody, Harmony, and Chords

1. 1 Identify the song by the melody. A melody is a sequence of notes of different heights, sounding in a certain rhythm, which a person perceives as an integral composition.
   • The melody consists of phrases arranged in measures. These phrases can be repeated throughout the melody, such as in the Christmas song “Deck the Halls,” in which the first and second lines have the same sequence of notes in measures.
   • Most often, songs use the following structure: one melody accompanies the verse, and another melody associated with it accompanies the chorus.
2. 2 Add harmony to the melody. Harmony is the play of notes outside the current melody in order to make the sound brighter and more contrasting. As stated above, many stringed instruments can produce different tones when picked up; overtones sounding together with the main tone are one of the forms of harmony. Harmony can be achieved by playing various musical phrases and chords.
   • Harmony that enhances the sound of a melody is called consonant.The overtones that sound along with the fundamental when picking up the strings on the guitar are an example of consonant harmony.
   • Harmony that contrasts with the melody is called dissonant. Dissonant harmony can be achieved by playing contrasting melodies, such as in the case of the song “Row Row Row Your Boat,” when different groups of people start singing the above phrase at different times.
   • In many songs, dissonance is used to express vague feelings, and further progress towards consonant harmony. As in the example of “Row Row Row Your Boat”, once each group finishes singing a verse, the song becomes calmer until the last group sings “Life is but a dream”.
3. 3 Group notes into chords. A chord is made up of three or more notes that sound simultaneously or not simultaneously.
   • The most commonly used chords are triads (three notes), in which each subsequent note is two notes apart from the previous one. In a C major chord, the notes of the chord will be C (tonic), E (major third), G (fifth). In a C minor chord, the E note will be replaced by the E flat (minor third) note.
   • Another commonly used chord is the seventh chord, in which a fourth note is added to the triad, the seventh from the root. In the seventh chord in C major, the note B is added to the C-E-G triad, resulting in a C-E-G-B sequence. Septa chords are more dissonant than triads.
   • You can use a different chord for each note in a song; thus, the so-called "hairdressing" harmony is created. Most often, however, notes from a given chord are played in chords, for example, playing a C major chord to play out the E notes.
   • Many songs have three chords, the root of which is the first, fourth, and fifth notes of the scale. In this case, the Roman numerals I, IV, and V are used. In the key of C major, these chords will be C major, F major, and G major. Often, a major or minor V chord is replaced with a seventh chord; thus, in the key of C major, the V chord would be the seventh in G major.
   • Chords I, IV, and V are key-related. The F major chord is the IV chord in the key of C major, and the C major chord is in turn the V chord in the F major key. Also, a G major chord is a V chord in the key of C major, and a C major chord is an IV chord in the key of G major. These relationships apply to other chords as well, and are depicted in a diagram called the fifth circle.

Part 4 of 4: Types of Musical Instruments

1. 1 Percussion instruments. This type of instrument is considered to be one of the oldest. Most are designed to create and maintain rhythm, although some can play melody or create harmony.
   • Percussion instruments that create sound due to the vibration of their structure are called idiphones. This includes instruments that create sound from striking themselves against themselves, such as cymbals and castanets, as well as those that create sound from striking other objects, such as steel drums, triangles, and xylophones.
   • Coated percussion instruments that vibrate upon impact are called membranophones. This includes drums such as timpani, tom-toms, and bongos, as well as instruments with a string or stick attached to the membrane that vibrates upon contact, such as kuika.
2. 2 Woodwind instruments. Wind instruments create sound due to the vibration that occurs when they are blown. Most have pitch-bend holes so they can play melodies and harmonies. Woodwind instruments are divided into two types: flutes, which create sound by vibrating the entire instrument, and reed tubes, which contain vibrating material. In turn, they are divided into two subtypes.
   • Open flutes create sound by dividing the air flow against the edge of the instrument. Concert flutes and flutes are of this type.
   • Closed flutes direct air through a channel inside the instrument to separate it and create vibration. Organ pipes belong to this type.
   • In single-reed instruments, this reed is housed in the mouthpiece. When blown into it, the cane makes the air inside the instrument vibrate and create sound. The clarinet and saxophone are examples of single-reed instruments. (Although the body of the saxophone is made of copper, it is considered a woodwind instrument because it uses a cane to create sound.)
   • Double cane instruments use two reed canes tightly connected to each other at one end. On instruments such as the oboe and bassoon, this double reed should be between the musician's lips, while on bagpipes and krumhorns this double reed is under the cover.
3. 3 Brass instruments. Unlike woodwind instruments, which only direct the flow of air, brass instruments vibrate with the movements of the musician's lips to create sound. Such instruments are called copper because most of them are made of copper; but besides this, they are also divided into subspecies, depending on their ability to change the sound due to the change in the distance that the air must travel before exiting. This can be achieved in one of two ways.
   • Trombones use a rocker to change the distance the air must travel before exiting. When the curtain is extended, the distance increases, lowering the tone, and when it moves in, the distance decreases, raising the tone.
   • Other brass instruments, such as trumpet and tuba, use a set of valves to expand or contract the airflow inside the instrument. These valves can be pressed individually or together to achieve the sound you want.
   • Woodwinds and brass instruments are often referred to simply as wind instruments because they have to be blown in to create music.
4. 4 Stringed instruments. The strings on stringed instruments can be sounded in three different ways: by plucking (guitar), by striking (dulzimer or hammers on a piano), or by bowing (violin or cello). String instruments can be used for both rhythmic and melodic accompaniment and can be divided into three categories:
   • The lute is a stringed instrument with a resonating body, such as the violin, guitar, and banjo. The strings are the same length (except for the lower string on a five-string banjo) and vary in thickness. Thicker strings produce a low pitch, while thinner strings produce a high pitch. The strings are pressed in special places called frets, which shortens their length and allows them to reach different heights.
   • The harp is a stringed instrument, the strings of which are placed in a special frame. The strings of the harp are in an upright position and have different lengths, and the lower end of each string is connected to the resonating body (deck) of the instrument.
   • Zither is a stringed instrument with a flat body of irregular shape. The strings on the zither can be tugged or hooked, direct and indirect strikes can be made, as on a dulcimer or piano.

Tips

• The scales of natural major and minor are linked in such a way that the minor scale of the key is two notes lower than the major scale with the same notes, raised or lowered. Thus, the keys in C major and A minor, in which there are no sharps and flats, have the same set of notes.
• Certain instruments, or groups of instruments, are associated with certain styles of music. For example, string quartets consisting of two violins, viola and cello, are usually played in a genre of classical music called chamber music. Jazz bands usually have a rhythm section, consisting of drums, keys, sometimes double bass and tuba, and a brass section, consisting of trumpets, trombones, clarinets, and saxophones.Sometimes it is interesting to play songs on instruments other than those for which the piece was written. An example of this is “Strange Al” Jankovic, who plays famous polka-style rock songs on the accordion.